I started playing pokemon when it first came out in North America. I was 14 at the time. My friend and I bought it the very day it arrived at the local gaming store and we traded cartridges. I played the Red version.

I remember getting the Game Boy Mini, just because the original big clunky Game Boy was too big - hence conspicuous - to carry around at school, and I wanted to play that game every chance I got. I earned a lot of money doing other kids' homework, just to get the game. I traded many pokemon, won many link battles, lost many link battles, hunted the mysterious Missingno, sought the elussive Mew, and lost several game saves in the process. Eventually, because I brought my Game Boy everywhere, it was stolen, and I was distrought over all those poor lost poke-souls (not to mention the countless hours spent acquiring them).

Eventually, I got a Game Boy Colour; and when pokemon Yellow came out, I gleefully got that too. It's funny, because at the time I was impressed with the colour that was added the game; it's almost like looking back into the dark ages of gaming. That game kept me sane through a troubling time in my adolescence, and I still have that cartridge to this day. However, the only person I ever let borrow it was my girlfriend at the time - probably because I really trusted her, but most likely because she was a pretty girl and I was a teenage boy.

Eventually, Gold and Silver came out, and that was special because they were full colour games. In fact, it marks the only time (if you don't count the fact that I owned the blue version for a few minutes) that I bought all the versions in a generation, Crystal included. By this time I had changed schools, so no one I knew played the game; despite this, the game was never too uncool to play. Actually, I played the games so much that they were taken away from me by my father and I actually devised a way to go down to the United States and retreave them.

I bought Sapphire, Leaf Green, and Fire Red, and survived the lowest point in the game's generational shift. I still enjoyed the game... but eventually, I stopped playing out of bordom, and disappointment over the fact that I couldn't transfer all of my favourite pokemon trapped in the Gold, Silver, and Crystal cartridges.

...And then, Generation IV hit the market and peaked my curiosity. I bought the Pearl version and played it with a newfound love of the game. Platinum was even better, and pretty much caused me never to touch my Pearl cartridge again (I don't even know where it went). All was good, and I was happy with the series once again; sure there were evolutions that I wanted to see, but if another generation never came out, I would have been fine with generation IV.

When Soul Silver and Heart Gold came out, I was overjoyed and bought those as well. In my opinion, the best versions out of all the games in the series. Though I like generation V, I find myself still going back to SS/HG, just because it is so enjoyable.

So, I have been with the game through the entire series (there are the peripheral spin-off games that I played as well, but those don't really count), and though I am now 28 (with 30 looming overhead like a dark cloud), I can see myself buying Pokemon games well into the future. As long as they make them I will buy them whether - they're good or not. It's not about how cool it is, or the level of gameplay involved, or even whether anyone else is playing anymore; because, at the end of the day...

My parents bough me the Game (Blue Version) and a Lime Green Gameboy Colour for my 7th birthday (the year 2000), My brother got Red version too so it was amazing we'd sit next to each other and play it and even after we'd defeated the elite four neither of us could find the FLY HM, so we'd have to walk everywhere.

I've loved the games ever since, I appreciated the Anime but never really got into it in the same way I got into the games. I've bought every game since and never really stopped loveing it, i'm pretty open with my love for pokemon no matter who i'm with, if someone disagree's with me or think it's uncool i don't really care, i love it too much.

I remember leaving University early to walk with my mates to pick up White version this year, i don't think you will ever see three 18 year olds walking around so happily after leaving an electronics store.

Lets see.... I got into the games pretty much from the beginning.. Maybe 1995 or something.. If that's so, then I was around 6 or 7. I stopped playing a little between 3rd and 4th gen., but I played every gen., and never stopped playing completely, obviously...

I've mainly only been into the video games. I collected cards at some point during elementary school, but I've mainly always been into the main games.

I remember leaving University early to walk with my mates to pick up White version this year, i don't think you will ever see three 18 year olds walking around so happily after leaving an electronics store.

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I know exactly what you're talking about. I was the only person with a beard that was walking out of gamestop with a pokemon game xD

When I was eleven or so, I used to think Pokemon was stupid. The monsters looked too childish, and I was into more "grown up" things, like Final Fantasy Tactics (still my most favorite game of all time, evar, by the way) and Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

Well, that was until I played Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 64. At first, I really liked playing as Link and Samus. But, then I tried out Pikachu and holy crap! It was like Pikachu was meant for me. I could demolish anybody in that game using that little yellow rat.

Eventually, I wanted to know more about Pikachu, so I started looking it up on the internet. The following christmas, I got a Gameboy Color and Pokemon Blue, Red, and Yellow. I was hooked for awhile. I played all the way up through Third Gen, but eventually lost interest in it being in high school. I eventually got back into it about five years ago, with Diamond and Pearl. Best relapse I've ever had!

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I started watching the anime when I was 3. I started playing the games a few years ago when I was 9. I've been collecting the cards, however, pretty much from the day I was born. I have more than 20 binders filled with them.